Richie Incognito files grievance to return to Miami Dolphins

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Alleged NFL bully Incognito speaks out

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Dolphins suspended Incognito, accusing him of conduct detrimental to the team

Incognito files a "non-injury grievance" against the Dolphins

Incognito wants case settled quickly so he can get back on the field

NFL player Richie Incognito wants an expedited hearing on his suspension from the Miami Dolphins so he can return to the field soon.

Incognito filed a "non-injury grievance" against the Dolphins, who suspended him for conduct detrimental to the team earlier this month, according to the NFL Players Association.

Incognito said in an interview last weekend that his alleged bullying of Miami Dolphin teammate Jonathan Martin is misunderstood because "people don't know how Jon and I communicate to one another."

Martin, 24, left the team last month because of "harassment that went far beyond the traditional locker room hazing," Martin's lawyer said. Days later, Incognito, 30, was suspended.

"The grievance challenges his suspension for conduct which was alleged to have occurred while he was with the club," the association's statement said. "In the grievance, Incognito requests that the hearing be held on an expedited basis so that he can immediately resume playing for the team."

Photos: Richie Incognito 12 photos

Photos: Richie Incognito12 photos

Richie Incognito – The Miami Dolphins have suspended Pro Bowl offensive lineman Richie Incognito following allegations of misconduct from teammate Jonathan Martin. Incognito played for the University of Nebraska before he was drafted in 2005 by the St. Louis Rams. He also played for the Buffalo Bills in 2009 before joining the Dolphins in 2010.

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Richie Incognito – Incognito walks to the field from the locker room during a Buffalo Bills game in December 2009.

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Richie Incognito – Incognito, seen here playing for the Rams in December 2006, was suspended by the Dolphins for detrimental conduct. ESPN, NFL.com and other media outlets reported that Martin's representatives submitted voicemails to the league and to the Dolphins containing racial slurs from Incognito and threats of physical violence. Martin left the Dolphins in the middle of the season.

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Richie Incognito – Incognito stands on the sidelines during a Rams preseason game in August 2008. Several media outlets said Martin had left the Dolphins because of bullying, something Incognito denied on Twitter."Shame on you for attaching my name to false speculation," one of the tweets said, according to Bleacher Report. That tweet and others addressed to various media outlets were deleted later.

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Richie Incognito – The Rams released Incognito in December 2009 after an argument during a game with then-head coach Steve Spagnuolo.

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Richie Incognito – Incognito stretches during the last day of Dolphins minicamp in June 2010.

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Richie Incognito – The Sporting News takes a yearly poll of NFL players, and in 2009 they dubbed Incognito the dirtiest player in the league.

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Richie Incognito – Incognito arrives on the red carpet for ESPN The Magazine's NEXT Party in February 2011.

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Richie Incognito – Incognito "was really kind of a big teddy bear off the field," said Chris Draft, who played with Incognito when both were with the Rams in 2007 and 2008. "My wife actually loved him."

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Richie Incognito – Incognito is introduced during a Dolphins game in September 2012.

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Richie Incognito – Incognito and Martin talk on the sideline during the second half of a preseason game August 24.

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Richie Incognito – Incognito played in his first Pro Bowl in January.

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EXPAND GALLERY

The Dolphins declined CNN's request for comment on the filing. "Our organizational policy is not to comment on grievance matters," a team spokesman said.

Miami Dolphins owner Stephen Ross said he called for the independent investigation by the NFL because he knew the objectivity of a team investigation could be questioned.

"We need to look at ourselves," Ross said. "We have to examine everything internally. I know that this is so appalling to me."

But Ross also said he wanted to avoid overreacting. He formed a committee to help guide the changes, including former Dolphin coach Don Shula and quarterback Dan Marino.

"We all know that the football locker room is a different workplace than most of us are accustomed to," Ross said. "Basically, I don't want to make any excuses. I want to know that our workplace going onward will be the best workplace that you can find in the NFL."

Incognito acknowledged in an interview aired on "Fox NFL Sunday" that he used racist and vulgar language in voice mails and text messages to Martin but said it was "coming from a place of love."

"No matter how bad and how vulgar it sounds, that's how we communicate," he told Fox Sports reporter Jay Glazer. "That's how our friendship was."

"For instance, a week before this went down, Jonathan Martin text me on my phone 'I will murder your whole F-ing family,'" Incognito told Glazer. "Now, do I think Jonathan Martin was going to murder my family? Not one bit."

While Martin has not spoken publicly since the controversy erupted, his attorney David Cornwell broke the silence on his behalf with a prepared statement last week.

Martin tried "to befriend ... teammates who subjected him to the abuse with the hope that doing so would end the harassment" -- something Cornwell called "a textbook reaction of victims of bullying."

The taunting did not stop, however, the lawyer said. He cited "a malicious physical attack on him by a teammate and daily vulgar comments," and a threat of a group sexual assault against Martin's sister.

"Eventually, Jonathan made a difficult choice," Cornwell said of Martin leaving the Dolphins. "... Jonathan looks forward to getting back to playing football. In the meantime, he will cooperate fully with the NFL investigation."

"The face of bullying in America"

"Right, wrong or indifferent, because of all this, you've become the face of bullying in America," Glazer told Incognito. "Someone thinks of a bully, they think of Richie Incognito."

"This isn't an issue about bullying," Incognito said. "This is an issue of my and Jon's relationship, where I've taken stuff too far, and I didn't know it was hurting him."

A profanity-filled voice mail from Incognito to Martin that has been made public was intended to shock him so "his buddy" would call him back, he said.

"I understand why a lot of eyebrows get raised," Incognito said, "when people don't know how Jon and I communicate to one another."